


Shogatsu

by jamjar



Category: Here is Greenwood
Genre: Gen, Yuletide, challenge:Yuletide 2005, recipient:Calliope
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-19
Updated: 2009-12-19
Packaged: 2017-10-04 16:12:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/32060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jamjar/pseuds/jamjar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>New Year comes every year.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shogatsu

  


  
  
  
  
  


  
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## Shogatsu

 

Fandom: [Here Is Greenwood](http://yuletidetreasure.org/get_fandom_quicksearch.cgi?Fandom=Here%20Is%20Greenwood)

 

Written for: Calliope in the Yuletide 2005 Challenge

by [jamjar](http://www.yuletidetreasure.org/cgi-bin/contact.cgi?filename=15/shogatsu)

 

_New Year's Past_

 

His brother was small and round and loud. This, as far as Kazuhiro was concerned, was it for the baby. It was small, round and very, very loud, and there was nothing more to be said about it. He leaned over the crib, looked at his brother and shook his head.

 

Definitely, it wasn't cute and even more definitely not beautiful, no matter what everyone kept saying. It wasn't cute, it was _red_. Red hair (what little there was of it), and red skin every time it screwed up its face to cry which it did _all the time_. Red and snotty and loud.

 

"You," he told his brother, "are more trouble than you're worth."

 

The baby gave him an affronted look. It started to scrunch up its face in what, by now, he knew was preparation for it to start howling like a police siren.

 

Kazuhiro put his finger right where the scowl was forming experimentally. The baby gave him a shocked expression. He took his finger off and the baby gathered his strength, only to be thwarted when he deliberately smoothed the frown away.

 

The baby gave him a nasty look and tried to howl. It only managed a weak cry, cut off every time Kazuhiro carefully stroked away its scowl. He leaned over. The baby was definitrely wanting to cry, but it looked like it couldn't do it without scrunching its face up, and it couldn't do that while he was smoothing its frown away.

 

The look it gave him spoke volumes about its frustration, but without the ability to scrunch up its face, it was only able to give choked-off little sobs. There was something deeply satisfying about that particular look of frustration that made Kazuhiro keep his fingers on the baby's forehead.

 

"Kazuhiro!"

 

Kazuhiro jumped back guiltily. "I wasn't teasing him!" The baby gave a little sob, as if in disbelief, and then started to gear up for its full-volume crying.

 

His mother gave him a strange look. "Oh, how nice. You're looking after your little brother."

 

He was? Of course he was! He nodded vigorously. "He was starting to cry, so I just tried to distract him," he said.

 

His mother's smile was wide, happy, even against the growing backdrop of Kazuya's cries. She picked the baby up and held him, jigging him a little to calm him down. "You're a good boy, Kazuhiro. You know, everyone told us that we'd have to watch out for you being jealous of the baby, but I knew better. You're going to be a good big brother."

 

Kazuya gave Kazuhiro a tear-filled and accusing look. Kazuhiro looked at his mother and smiled. "Of course. I'm going to be the best big brother, ever."

_New Year's Present_

 

Kazuya showed up on the doorstep, a familiar look of frustration and mistreatment on his face. Kazuhiro opened the door wide. "Kazuya! You decided to come home for New Year's. I knew you wouldn't be able to stay away from your loving family. Sumire's still visiting her parents, but she'll be so happy to see you when she gets back."

 

Kazuya pushed past him an dropped his bag in the doorway. "I'm only here because I have nowhere else to go." He paused and corrected himself. "Nowhere safe to go, that's not surrounded by evil socipathic ba--"

 

"I thought you were going to stay with Mitsuru," Kazuhiro said. "At his family's shrine?" He leaned in. "Is that lipstick?"

 

Kazuya rubbed his lips with the back of his hand. "No!" He said. "And it's not like I wanted it, but they-- he-- I thought Mitsuru was like he was because he was adopted, but his whole family is just as bad. They said they needed some more people to help with the shrine and I didn't think they meant shrine maidens, and I'm not like Shun, I make a lousy-- and stop smiling! You shouldn't look so happy because your younger brother was forced to dress like a girl."

 

"There, there. I'm sure it was terrible. But it's not like anyone at school will find out," Kazuhro said. "I'm sure Mitsuru will keep it to himself."

 

Kazuya groaned and hit his head against the wall.

 

"Besides, who would believe him," Kazuhiro said, smiling with as much fake-innocence as he could. Of course, Kazuya couldn't see him, not when he was hitting his head against the wall like that, but it was important to watch the details. "It's not like he'd have taken pictures or anything." A thought struck him. "Was he dressed as a miko as well?"

 

"No! And why are you so interested?" Kazuya asked, shooting him a suspicious look. There was a large, pink oval on his forehead from where he'd been hitting it against the wall and it clashed horribly with his hair.

 

Kazuhiro held up his hands innocently. "My motives are pure! I have no interest in men dressed as women. Men should be strong, manly, attractive..."

 

Kazuya's scowl deepened. "I hate you," he said. "I'm only here because there are other, worse people out there."

 

Kazuhiro patted him on the shoulder. "I'm glad you're here," he said. "Sumire will be back soon. You can help me get dinner ready."

 

Kazuya shrugged and headed off into the kitchen. Kazuhiro made a note to thank Mitsuru for scaring Kazuya home for the New Year, and another to make more of an effort to tease him. After all, it wouldn't do to have his position as chief bully of his little brother usurped. Mitsuru was good at it, but really, these things were a big brother's responsibility.

__

_New Year's Future_

 

"Don't you worry," Kazuhiro said. "Of course, the baby will keep you awake all night. Why, you cried so much when you were teething, we had to move to a new house because the neighbours complained so much! It's only natural that your baby will be just the sa--" There was a click and the phone went dead. Kazuhiro stared at it for a moment, then shook his head. "Really, if he's that stressed now, he's going to be a nervous wreck by the time the baby comes." He put the phone back on the receiver and pulled the covers a little tighter around him.

 

"Are they alright?" Sumire asked, not looking up from the pages of her book.

 

"Fine. Kazuya's worried about being a father," he said.

 

"And you reassured him. You are such a good big brother," she said, with only honest sincerity in her voice.

 

"I just wanted to give him the benefit of my experience," Kazuhiro said, then he rubbed his hands. "I can't wait to be an uncle. I'm going to spoil those kids rotten. Their weight in chocolate every birthday." He closed his eyes. "Hey, do you remember Midori's birthday party, with the cake and the sweets and the--"

 

She shuddered dramatically. "And the crying."

 

He nodded, smiling. "Kazuya was just like that when he was little. Sugar made him go crazy. Once he ate 3 kilos of chocolate, spent three hours crying or jumping on the bed, and then was sick all over my new shoes."

 

"Hmm. And you cannot be trusted once you've had something sweet either," Sumire said. "Maybe it runs in the family."

 

He raised an eyebrow and gave her a lecherous grin. She hit him in the arm with her book and rolled her eyes. He waited -one, two, three- and there, she gave him that little sideways, affectionate look that made him want to do something absurdly romantic or mildly obscene. She caught his gaze and made a "tch" sound, shaking her head in mock-reproach. He sighed and let his head fall back on the pillow.

 

"Pure, processed sugar every time we visit them," Kazuhito said. "And I'll tell them all the embarrassing stories about their father."

 

"You will not!" She propped herself up on elbow, putting the book flat beside her. "You forgot, Mr Hasukawa, I have seen you with children. I happen to know you are a wonderful father, kind, but firm, who gives his children love and vegetables with every meal."

 

"Ah, but you don't see the key difference. As an uncle, I won't have to worry about cavities or the children being over-tired or well-behaved. I can be the cool, generous uncle, taking them to exciting amusement parks and feeding them ice-cream, all safe in the knowledge that Kazuya will have to put them to bed after. It will be wonderful..."

_end_

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